The present disclosure relates generally to information handling systems, and more particularly to a cable management for an information handling system.
As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option is an information handling system (IHS). An IHS generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements may vary between different applications, IHSs may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in IHSs allow for IHSs to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, IHSs may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.
Some IHSs include a plurality of IHSs that are stored in racks and coupled together in order, for example, to provide a higher degree of computing power. Each IHS stored in the rack may require a plurality of cables that couple to, for example, that IHS, other IHSs stored in the rack, other IHSs stored outside the rack, and/or cable connections on the rack. As number of IHSs in the rack grows, the management of the cables raises a number of issues.
Typically, a customer who orders a plurality of IHSs for a rack-type system described above will receive a plurality of individual cables that may or may not be needed for each system. The customer will use some of those cables on each IHS, and the leftover cables with be discarded or stored, which increases costs. Installation of the cabling typically involves connecting each cable to the IHS and to the corresponding connection that provides functionality to that IHS. As each IHS requires a plurality of cables, this results in a high number of individual cables running through the rack. When all of the IHSs in the rack have been cabled, these individual cables are typically tied together and/or to the rack in groupings that are appropriate with the positioning of the cables. For large data centers, the process of cabling the IHSs can take many months, and the tying together of cables results in the need to disconnect the cables from an IHS when the need arises to slide that IHS partially out of the rack to, for example, add components to that IHS or troubleshoot problems with that IHS. Customers typically pay premiums to have such cabling done, which increases costs. Furthermore, cabling in this manner results in cabling that is not consistent across customers, which makes troubleshooting cabling problems difficult, time consuming, and expensive.
One solution to this cable management problem is to provide a cable management arm, which is a metal jointed arm that defines a passageway and pivotally couples to the rack. Cables that are coupled to an IHS are positioned in the passageway on the cable management arm such that when the IHS is slid partially out of the rack, the cable management arm pivots on its own coupling and its coupling to the rack and extends into the rack to allow the cables to remain connected to the IHS as that IHS is moved through the rack. However, these cable management arms tend to be large and bulky and can obstruct access to and take up space in the rear of the rack. Furthermore, a cable management arm may be needed for each IHS in the rack, and they must each be individually installed on the rack, increasing shipping costs and installation times.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide improved cable management.